Jack Sock made short work of former champion Ivo Karlovic, winning 6-1, 6-4 in the first round of the U.S. men's Clay Court Championship on Monday at River Oaks Country Club.
The 21-year-old American had lost both previous meetings with the 6-foot-10 Karlovic, who won the only U.S. men's tournament played on clay in 2007 at a different Houston venue.
In this one Sock broke the Croatian's huge serve twice in the first set and wound up spending less than an hour on the court.
Sock's countryman, Sam Querry, had to battle to get past Alex Bogomolov Jr., of Russia 6-4, 7-6 (6), but it was a satisfying win for the tournament's 2010 runner-up.
"Right now I'll take one pretty much however I can get it," said Querrey, whose ranking has plunged from a high of 17 in 2011 to its current 82.
He hasn't advanced into the third round this season since the Australian Open in January.
"It's the first time I've been able to grind through a tough match like that all year," he said. "Hopefully, it will lead to more wins and better results."
German-born Dustin Brown easily moved on, beating American Rhyne Williams 6-1, 6-2. Williams had reached the tournament's semifinals last year. The 29-year-old Brown, who began his pro career playing out of Jamaica, is ranked 101st.
Alejandro Gonzalez of Colombia rallied to eliminate Marcos Baghdatis of Cypress 4-6, 6-2, 6-1 in the final match of the night. Baghdatis, the Australian Open runner-up in 2006 who once ranked eighth, had been given a wild card by tournament organizers. His ranking has fallen to 129.
Americans Ryan Harrison and Ryan Harrison, Peter Polansky of Canada and Ruben Ramirez Hidalgo of Spain won spots in the 28-man field with victories in the qualifying tournament.
Defending champion John Isner, ranked a career-high ninth, is the tournament's No. 1 seed. Spaniard Tommy Robredo is seeded second. They play their first matches Wednesday.
